BR 125 
.063 
Copy 1 



THE 

MYSTERY MADE KNOWN 

AND QUESTIONS ANSWERED 



BY 



ELDER F. OSBORN 

OF JEWELL, KANSAS 



WESTERN ADVOCATE, Printers 
Mankato, Kansas 

1903 



PEACE ON EARTH AND GOOD WILL 
TO MEN.— Luke 2:14. 

• • • 

LOVE GOOD AND ESCHEW EVIL. 

• • • 

HONOR THE APOSTLES OE JESUS 
BY RECEIVING THEIR WORD 

AND 

OBEYING THEIR COMMANDS 

AND YOU RECEIVE AND HONOR HIM, 

Matt. 10 : 40, Luke 10 : 16, and John 13 : 20. 



Sir: 

I earnestly request that you give the booklet that 
I herewith hand you, a careful reading, and then ex- 
press to me, as concisely as you can, in type writing 
your candid opinion of the practicability of the plan 
suggested for unifying Christian work and thereby the 
general uplift of civilization and christianizing of the 
whole world. 

Also what you as an individual are willing to con- 
tribute in individual effort, by example and teaching, 
and material or financial support, in and of the work 
to the end desired. 

Respectfully, 

ELDER F. OSBORN. 



INTRODUCTION TO MYSTERY MADE KNOWN 
5 AND QUESTIONS ANSWERED 

©63 

I can offer no better excuse for the following 
pages than a burning desire to focus the eyes and af- 
fections of my readers on the glorified Redeemer of 
men and cause them, if possible, to unite on a divine 
Platform to bring all men, everywhere, to Christ. 
And, what seems to me to be a very loud call at home 
and abroad for Christian union, on a basis of higher 
dictation than that of men, and what I see to be the 
need and demand of the world today, a reprint of the 
law of Christ in all languages, after the pattern shown 
in the McNight, Dodridge and Campbell translation 
and the American and German translations, these 
combined and harmonized would make a rhythm in 
Gospel work that would lift all men, everywhere, to 
the Great Physician who alone can heal the wound 
that sin has made, and heal them all by the one law. 

If I have not sufficiently simplified the work in 
hand, and if, after its careful review, there should 
arise one brother, or a hundred, more competent than 
myself, I could heartily extend my benediction. 

With a hearty desire to fill a needed place in the 
uplift of humanity and realizing that my vocal organs 
will not serve me to the end desired and expressed in 
the following pages, I hereby dedicate this work to all 
of my fellows in life and only ask at your hands what 



4 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

I honestly believe you would ask of me under the 
same conditions, a careful reading. And for your 
own good now and hereafter and the good of all those 
over whom you may have influence, I beg of you a 
hearty adoption of the Divine code suggested at the 
close and a hearty cooperation in its promulgation 
that we may rejoice together in the day that JESUS 
shall assemble the world and divide them, setting His 
lovers on the one hand and the fleshly minded on the 
other. 

" Until He comes give good heed to teaching, 
exhortation and fellowship one with another, and the 
LORD JESUS that great Shepherd keep your Souls 
and preserve your Spirits and Bodies until He comes." 
— / Thess. 5:23. 



TEXTS 

"In the beginning GOD created the Heavens 
and the Earth." — Gen. 1:1. 

li And GOD saw everything that He had made, 
and behold it was very good." — Gen. 1:28. 

" And the LORD smelled a sweet savor; and the 
LORD said in His affections, I will not again curse 
the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagin- 
ations of man's intellect is evil from his youth. " — 
Gen. 8:21. 

Read Job 4.0:7-9. 

1 i Now then you are no longer strangers and so- 
journers, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of 
the household of GOD; having built upon the founda- 
tion of the apostles and prophets, JESUS CHRIST 
being the chief corner stone, by which the whole 
building, being fitly compacted together, rises into a 
holy temple of the LORD, in which you also are 
builded together for a habitation of GOD, by the 
Spirit. — Eph. 2:19-22. 

1 • Wherefore I am made a minister, according to 
the dispensation of GOD which is given me for you, 
to fulfill the word of GOD, even the secret which had 
been kept hid from the ages and from the generations, 
but now is made manifest to the saints, to whom GOD 
has pleased to make known what is the riches of the 
glory of this secret among the gentiles, which is 
CHRIST in you, the hope of glory; whom we an- 



6 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

nounce, admonishing every man and teaching every 
man with all wisdom that we may present every man 
perfect in CHRIST. For which I am laboring, com- 
bating vigorously, according to the effectual working 
of Him who works effectually in me with power." — 
Col. i : 25-29. 

" Ye are they who have continued with me in my 
trials. And I grant unto you to eat and to drink at 
my table in my Kingdom, ( for as much as my Father 
has granted me a Kingdom) and to sit on thrones, 
judging the twelve tribes of Israel." — Luke 22:28-50. 

" But the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send 
in my name will teach you all things, and remind you 
of all that I have told you. Peace I leave with you; 
my peace I give unto you; not as the world gives do 
I give you; be not disheartened, be not intimidated." 
John 14:26-2 7. 

"For he is our peace, who has made both one 
and has broken down the middle wall of partition; 
having abolished by His flesh the enmity, that might 
make the two into one new man, under Himself, so 
making Peace, and might reconcile both to GOD in 
one body through the Cross; having slain the enmity 
with it; and, having come, He brought good news of 
peace to you, the far off, to us the nigh, that, through 
Him, we both have introduction to the Father by one 
Spirit. "—Eph. 2:14-18. 

" And fear not them which kill the body and can- 
not kill the Soul; rather fear Him who can destroy 
both Soul and body in hell." — Matt. 10:28. 

fl But I charge you my friends, fear not them who 
kill the body, and after that can do no more; but I 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 7 

will show you whom you ought to fear; fear Him, 
who, after he has killed, has power to cast into hell." 
— Luke 12:4.. 

"And who is he that will harm you, if you be 
followers of that which is good ? Nevertheless, al- 
though you even suffer for righteousness sake, you are 
happy, therefore do not fear their fear, neither be 
troubled; but Sanctify the LORD GOD in your affec- 
tions; and be always ready for giving an answer, with 
meekness and reverence, to every one who asks of you 
a reason for the hope which is in you; hold fast a good 
conscience, that, whereas they speak against you as 
evil doers, they may be ashamed who arraign your 
good behavior in CHRIST, for it is better to suffer as 
well doers, if the will of GOD appoint it, than as evil 
doers. ' ' — / Pet. 3 : 13-17. 

" All Scripture, given by divine inspiration, is in- 
deed profitable for doctrine, for conviction, for cor- 
rection, for instruction in righteousness; that the man 
of GOD may be perfect ; completely fitted for every 
good work." — II Tim. 3:16-17. 

tl Strive to exhibit yourself to GOD an approved 
workman irreproachable, rightly dividing the word of 
truth." — II Tim. 2:13. 

"And I heard another voice from Heaven, say- 
ing, come out of her my people, that you be not par- 
takers of her sins, and that you may not partake of 
her plagues ; for her sins have followed up to Heaven 
and her unrighteous actions are come up in remem- 
brance before GOD." — Rev. 18:4. 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN AND QUESTIONS 
ANSWERED. 



Recognizing the fact that the congregation at 
Ephesus was built upon the Apostles and Prophets, 
JESUS CHRIST the chief corner stone, and the fact 
that they were a building fitly framed together and 
growing in the LORD, became a habitation for 
CHRIST, {Eph. 2:19-22) would it not be interesting 
for every disciple of CHRIST in this age to know 
the "how" of that structure, and build by the same 
pattern, that the congregations might reach as good 
results ? First, notice that they were builded on the 
the Apostles and Prophets, JESUS CHRIST the 
keystone of the arch. GOD erected one-half of the 
arch and CHRIST had filled the measure of the 
Prophets, received authority to continue the work, 
and He authorized His Apostles to complete the arch- 
way to His Kingdom, having given them the Keys to 
that institution {Matt. 16:19). Thus we see GOD 
in CHRIST reconciling the world to Himself. 

Second, notice that these brethren had built upon 
the facts stated by the Apostles, the facts so stated 
by them being found by the Jews to be in harmony 
with their Prophets and CHRIST, otherwise they 
builded on the sand. By reference to Isa. 22: 22 and 
Rom. 9:28 we learn that this work is both short and 
righteous. This contrast of the old and new law 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 9 

reveals the glory of the gospel that Paul calls the 
power of GOD to salvation {Rom. i :i6). Now that 
we have two laws, one old and one new, we should 
have no trouble in mining out of them that rhythm 
that lures the ear, fascinates the mind and charms 
the Soul of every one desiring the truth in his or her 
salvation in JESUS name. 

Rev. ii :i will furnish every reader for and 
teacher of the truth a measuring reed, to measure the 
temple he approaches, so that no one need make a 
mistake in entering the city of refuge erected on the 
Apostles and Prophets, with CHRIST the Head. 
But right here the objector and the timid raise the 
"wolf howl" and say, the reed was for John, the 
Revelator, and no one else can understand its use. 
I answer that John was an Apostle of JESUS CHRIST 
and in possession of the Keys of the Kingdom and on 
an equal footing with Peter, and carried on the work 
many years after Peter was crucified, having begun 
with Peter in Jerusalem where JESUS told them to 
begin (Acts i ;8) by opening the Kingdom and inviting 
men into, and their obedience to JESUS gave them 
glorious success. The definition of Revelation will 
dispel all doubt as to man's ability to understand 
Revelation or any other book of the Bible. Its 
meaning is " Something Revealed." Now if JOHN 
could understand CHRIST, and had the Keys of the 
Kingdom of CHRIST, it follows that he was capable 
of performing the duties of a teacher, and so leave on 
record for future peoples of Earth a law in their own 
language that they could read, hear and understand. 
And Paul corroborates JOHN'S ministry of the word 



IO MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

when he says that it was his business to ' ' make all 
men see what the fellowship of the secret hid in GOD, 
but now made known by the body as the wisdom 
of GOD, was." (Eph. j:p-io). It follows that all 
who hear or read may understand and have an oppor- 
tunity of entering the beautiful gate and go in and out 
and find pasture, food, thought and life everlasting. 

To know the body of CHRIST we must have a 
name in perfect harmony with Apostles and Prophets 
approved by CHRIST; and this name must be differ- 
ent from its opponent, and have a different meaning 
in all pertaining to it and its government. The body 
of CHRIST must have laws different from the laws of 
opposing governments, and these laws must be obeyed 
or disregarded in order to the best results or the most 
direful disappointment. 

Taking a short cut to righteousness, we will use 
the name in Matt. id:ip as a proper noun for the 
body in which we find the Ephesian brethren in the 
text, and that one to which Matthew says the Keys 
belonged, to-wit: ' 'The Kingdom and Babylon" {Rev. 
iy.'S) as tne opposing government, and from these we 
will make a reckoning to a definite conclusion. 

It is needless to give here the many references 
in both laws as a proof of the ' ' Kingdom ' ' being the 
institution of Christ, builded by the Apostles in the 
name of Christ. Suffice it to say that these names 
are in perfect harmony with Apostles and Prophets, 
as is the name of the opposing government. 

I call attention particularly to the definition of 
the two names and their synonyms. The definition 
of "Kingdom" is a realm governed by a King with 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 1 1 

clearly defined boundaries, laws of entrance and 
government, obedience to which brings to its subjects 
certainty of security in its declaration of promise. 
Such we claim is the Kingdom of the Bible as we find 
it in harmony with Apostles, prophets in Christ, the 
author and finisher. The definition of ' 4 Babylon " is 
confusion, and therefore consists of various laws of 
entrance and government; which names, if worn, and 
laws, if obeyed, will lead to utter confusion and final 
disappointment. Next we notice the synonyms for 
these governments. For "Kingdom" Zion, Govern- 
ment, Realm, will harmonize beautifully in a general 
sense, and congregation or assembly for the local 
body. These might be further designated by Disciples 
of Christ. This body, made up of individuals out of 
every government, composes the Kingdom of Christ, 
and congregations in various localities, who are 
governed by the same law of entrance and the law in 
the realm, compose the one body; so that where the 
individual member of the local congregation is found, 
the impress of the Kingdom of Christ is found. The 
difference in favor of the Kingdom of Christ consisting 
in the fact that the testimony concerning this institu- 
tion and laws of entrance, leads every one in at the 
open gate, and all have the same law of growth and 
reward. This distinction belongs to the local as well 
as the general body, and has the grand faculty of 
loosening the shackles of sin and making men and 
women free in Christ Jesus. On the other hand, I 
notice the definition of ' ' Babylon, ' ' which is ' ' con- 
fusion." The synonym for Babylon will have to be 
determined by the definition "confusion." There- 



12 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

fore, we must locate the confusion. Here we are 
driven to the " Churches," for there exists no greater 
confusion on earth than in the " churches," a verita- 
ble Babylon in which confusion is the principal at- 
traction. Every church, like the mother of Churches, 
has its own name, laws of admission and government. 
Babylon is a personal pronoun, feminine gender, 
"HER." {Rev. 17:4-) "HER" conspicuous be- 
cause of its personality as applied to Babylon a large 
body, composed of a large number of smaller bodies 
known in these latter days as churches. These 
churches have different names, laws of entrance and 
government; so that people are at the ultimatum of 
entering one or the other, according to the dictates of 
their conscience, but they must enter the church of 
their choice according to the ecclesia under which the 
"CHOICE" happens to be operating, but with the 
understanding that it is one of the branches, which is 
another synonym for Babylon. Now the worst feat- 
ure of the situation is that this institution is called by 
professed Christians of the age, " The church of Jesus 
Christ, ' ' and make the Bible responsible for its exist- 
ence as such. Now, to relieve the Bible of this res- 
ponsibility, we assert that this synonym for Babylon 
appears first in Matt. 16:18 as "My Church," as if 
Christ were guilty of giving His sanction to such an 
ominous name. Elsewhere it is styled ' ' The Church, 
"The Churches," to give the churches a greater de- 
gree of respectability. Yes, so we have confusion of 
the deepest dye, especially where the Reverends of 
the age call the entrance to these theoretic institutions 
"The remission of sins," and the obedience to their 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 1 3 

laws ' ' The salvation of the soul. ' ' They make this a 
matter of opinion. No wonder they are up against a 
problem they cannot solve and are casting about in 
their vain imaginations to hide themselves from the 
surging waves of gospel light by crying out for union 
on some terms that may be evolved from men's minds, 
while the good old way of Christ and His Apostles is 
shelved, and, sad to say, even worse. The dust of 
pick, hammer and shovel has fallen so thick and fast 
that the voice of the Holy Spirit itself has been re- 
duced to a small, still voice and, in like manner, the 
voices of such men as McNight and Dodridge, Martin, 
Smith and the Johnsons, who in their day sounded out 
the voice of the Holy Spirit and the Apostles, are to- 
day unnoticed, save by a few. 

May I not appeal with confidence to that people 
calling themselves Disciples of CHRIST, to restore to 
the world a knowledge of the kingdom of CHRIST ? 
And let the babylon of churches go into the abyss of 
desolation and everlasting destruction which the judg- 
ment of CHRIST has prepared for them. {Rev. 18.) 

Or is it possible that the so-called Christian min- 
istry will allow this golden opportunity to pass and 
CHRIST to shut the door He has opened to them 
and give the harvest into the garner of another ? No 
better plea could be made in this ripe age than the 
restoration of the Kingdom to the minds of the people 
instead of the church, as the Apostles taught the peo- 
ple, inviting men of every tribe into it. No more 
powerful fulcrum could be used by the Disciples of 
CHRIST in our age than the Kingdom of CHRIST 
instead of the church, as an agency in uniting Chris- 



14 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

tians everywhere, and so convincing the world of the 
power of sin to kill, and the power of the Gospel to 
save alive all who enter its portals. This proposition, 
acted upon by the ministry of today, would make the 
voice of the Apostles as clear and decisive as when 
they lived and actuated the principles of the Kingdom 
of Heaven. 

If the brotherhood would receive it as the book 
teaches it, they would clearly understand Rev. 18:^., 
"come out of HER my people." This command, 
obeyed from the affections, would bring the people of 
the churches to the one body, and the material 
churches would be noted for their empty pews and 
vacant rostrums. Preachers by the scores of hund- 
reds would raise their voices in loud hallelujahs at the 
sight of the hosts now under the delusion of opinions 
whom they would behold rushing into the fold of the 
KING of kings. 

No money would be spared in putting the pres- 
ent houses of worship together in places where need- 
ed for the accommodation of the congregations on 
the LORD'S Day, and for home and foreign mission- 
ary work of civilizing and Christianizing the world of 
humanity. 

Allow me here to urge the ministry to their great- 
est effort to restore the Kingdom of CHRIST to the 
world, with its simple rules of faith and practice, 
thus restoring the symmetry of the Ephesian congre- 
gation as Paul found it and portrayed it for a sample 
to those following in the world's history. 

It is but fair to conclude that all the congrega- 
tions of the apostolic age were erected on the same 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. I 5 

principle of Apostles and Prophets, with CHRIST 
the foundation. 

Question: Can a body calling themselves Chris- 
tians, who are built on any other foundation, and liv- 
ing under another name and other laws of entrance 
and government, be followed with as much safety as 
the congregation at Ephesus, Smyrna and Philadel- 
phia ? 

If yes, CHRIST is a respecter of persons, the 
Holy Spirit and Apostles are untrustworthy, and any 
way will do to enter the bride chamber at CHRIST'S 
coming, just so our conscience dictates the way. 

If no, then we are ready to conclude with JESUS 
that ' • the way is straight and the door narrow that 
leads to life, and few there be that find it." Also, 
' ■ The harvest is great and the laborers few. ' ' 

In the first part of this work I noticed the order 
of GOD'S work and the confusion into which men 
had thrown it, under a delusive name and laws of hu- 
man origin. I shall now produce the evidence in 
support of my claim. 

First, I notice the " Kingdom of Heaven." It 
has been well said that Order is Heaven's first law, 
and I add that it is Heaven's best law. The first two 
divisions of Genesis will furnish ample proof of this 
statement, and I conclude that the same law of order 
is effective in respect to the institutions that GOD 
gave men under their respective names and laws of 
administration. In the treatment of the subjects un- 
der consideration we shall apply the common rules of 
interpretation, and grammar and common sense. 
The rules of interpretation require us to present the 



1 6 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

Bible in the order of the dispensation in which we 
find the matter for consideration written. The gram- 
mar enables us to present our statement, evidence, 
and reasoning intelligently, and common sense aids 
us in drawing, not only logical, but stable conclusions. 
In II Peter j :8 we learn that one day and a thousand 
years are the same with GOD. We have three 
periods of two thousand years each in which Divinity 
wrought out the successive developments enumerated 
in the Bible, and man was the climax, and upon this 
structure GOD left His own impress. We notice 
briefly, that there is no positive without a negative. 
GOD'S opponent is a rebellious character who, by 
reason of his own selfishness, not only rebelled, but 
determined a continuation of his rebellion to the 
death. It is the office of a leader of rebellion to 
devise and carry into effect his plans at any cost, and 
by any agency that he may be able to lure and 
control. 

Dividing our time noted above into three periods 
of two thousand years each, we have the proper 
dispensations of GOD'S dealings with men. 

GOD planted a vineyard, hedged it, and person- 
ally cared for it two thousand years. Bat where 
should sin plant its seed of discord but in the fields of 
GOD'S own husbandry. We find him, not with the 
strong and sturdy man who governed his LORD'S 
vineyard, but with the weaker sex ; we hear him 
appealing to the sight and appetite of the woman and 
through the sympathies of the woman he succeeds in 
debauching man. And he has never lost an oppor- 
tunity of luring men and women into his meshes from 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. \J 

that time on. So toward the close of GOD'S per- 
sonal administration it was, that men through the lust 
of the eye, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life, 
aspired to domination; and in this aspiration he be- 
came so corrupt that GOD determined to select the 
best family for His own glory and the future good of 
the human race, and then put an end to man's bigotry. 
Hence the flood and the ark, which were a type of the 
destructive influences of sin and the power of CHRIST 
in His Kingdom, of which the ark was a perfect type, 
to save alive. 

We notice now that GOD Himself did not build 
the ark, but gave to Noah the instructions and the 
time in which to build the vessel, and Noah did the 
work through the agencies at his command. These 
agencies Noah recognized as GOD'S creation. No 
one will deny the fact that it was Noah's responsibil- 
ity, in the face of all opposition, to effect the comple- 
tion of the vessel by a strict compliance with the de- 
tails of the orders GOD gave him. By Noah's obe- 
dience to GOD'S orders a triumphant transit, a hap- 
py landing, and a re-peoplmg of the earth resulted. 

Seeing this happy result of Noah's obedience, is 
it not safe to conclude, that the obedience of Noah's 
descendants to GOD'S PERFECT law would have 
been to restore the human family to the primitive 
state, and GOD would again have delighted to dwell 
among men and personally communicate with them ? 
But, alas ! " The lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh 
and the pride of life," brought sadness to the mind of 
the just, and GOD proceeded to carry out His promise 
to satan in the Edenic possessions. (Gen. 3:14, 15). 



15 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

From this passage we conclude that GOD de- 
signed to carry out the destruction of satan and his 
work by the agencies placed in the hands of men. In 
other words, man left his beautiful home, followed his 
own inclinations, fared sumptuously every day on the 
lusts of the flesh, landed in the swine pen, ate with 
the swine, came to himself and returned home by the 
same road on which he left it. If the picture of the 
prodigal son was true in a temporal sense may it not 
be true in a spiritual sense ? I emphasize here, that 
GOD'S work is as perfect today as it was the day He 
finished it and pronounced it "very good/' Two 
thousand years He gave His vineyard to husbandmen. 
Periodically He sent one and another of His servants 
to receive of the husbandmen His share of the pro- 
ducts. One they beat, one they slew, and another 
they shamefully treated and sent away empty. Last 
of all He sent His Son in hope of proper recognition. 
But the husbandmen said "this is the Heir, come let 
us kill Him and we will have control." After satan 
had utilized the last agency in his power to conquer 
the Son of GOD by bruising His heel, and opening 
life's fountain in the human body of JESUS, and had 
sealed the body in the death chamber, we see the heel 
of the seed of the woman fastened upon the head of 
the serpent, the seal broken and the tomb opened and 
the words of JESUS brought to the minds of His 
witnesses and penned : "I AM THE WAY, the 
truth and the life." "I, if I be lifted up will draw 
all men unto Me. " "I have power to lay My life 
down and I have power to take it again. ' ' I believe 
that JESUS was and is able to accomplish all that 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. IO, 

He has promised to do. But He must be lifted up, 
and men must lift Him up. GOD entered upon the 
final act of man's recovery through a series of pro- 
phetic utterances that I wish now to introduce as evi- 
dence of my proposition. In GOD'S wisdom He 
chose one family through whom men could enjoy the 
home .interests and so bring all the families of earth 
to the one body. But as in former dispensations the 
intelligence of man and created material were agencies 
to the same end, so in the prophetic age, and man is 
his own governor and saviour. But man, like Noah, 
must use the agencies already provided and placed at 
his command. 

Nearly twenty-six hundred years have elapsed 
since GOD chose Daniel to tell His people about a 
new institution that He proposed to erect as an asylum 
for men. Let us read about it in {Daniel 2:44): 
11 In the days of these kings shall the GOD of Heaven 
set up a Kingdom which shall never be destroyed, and 
the Kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it 
shall break in pieces and consume all other Kingdoms 
and it shall stand forever. ' ' 

Concerning this Kingdom Nebuchadnezzar said : 
• ' It was good to show the signs and wonders that 
GOD had shown him." " How great are His signs 
and how mighty His wonders, His Kingdom is an ever- 
lasting Kingdom and His dominion from generation to 
generation." {Dan. 4:3). And after his subjection 
to the ordeal of a beast eating grass, he came to him- 
self and said : " GOD'S dominion is an everlasting 
dominion and extends to all generations." {Dan. 



20 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

In Daniel's vision of the four beasts he saw one 
like the Son of man coming in the clouds of Heaven; 
and there was given Him dominion and glory and a 
Kingdom; and His Kingdom and dominion should not 
be destroyed." {Dan. 7:13, 14). 

In Micah 4:7, the same institution is called Zion, 
and in the eighth verse it is styled the Kingdom. 

Luke says of CHRIST and His Institution : 
44 He shall be called the Son of the highest, and that 
GOD would give Him the throne of His Father David 
and His Kingdom shall have no end. ' ' Again, John 
the immerser said to the Jews that came to hear him : 
44 The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. " {Matt. j:2). 

When JESUS began His own ministry He said : 
44 The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. ' ' {Matt. 4.: 17). 
And when He sent the seventy out to preach He told 
them to say to the people whom they taught, 44 that 
the Kingdom of Heaven was nigh unto them." {Luke 
10:11). Mark, Luke and John each give us the life 
and teaching of JESUS, and neither of them use any 
other appellation for CHRIST'S Domain than 4 'King- 
dom." So I conclude that men have introduced into 
the King James and Revised Versions, and through 
them into the minds of the people, names and laws 
that men have used for self aggrandizement, and this 
much to the detriment of that domain whose only mis- 
sion on earth is peace and good-will to men. Millions 
of people have been drawn by these men-given names 
and laws, into the great whirlpool of opinion, and 
here the churches have found a stone that they can- 
not roll away. So I am persuaded that more testi- 
mony in the interest of Heaven's Eden on earth, the 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 21 

great city of refuge that Heaven's court has devised 
for man's emancipation from sin's greedy grasp, and 
the only one in which perpetual delights may be en- 
joyed, will be appreciated by the public. 

Let us notice the numerical strength of the King- 
dom and the church in the singular number and the 
plural number, for I am convinced that these terms 
must harmonize with prophets, apostles and CHRIST 
to establish their claim for their existence as noun or 
synonym for one or the other of the two great forces 
at work, one for man's interest and the other for his 
detriment. Notice that each one is preceeded by the 
definite article "The." The Kingdom occurs one 
hundred and twenty times in the new law, {King- 
James and Revised Versions ) while the • ' church 
occurs only fifty-two times. The " Kingdom" is pre- 
dominant in the old law, in that the " church " does 
not occur except in the head lines and then in italics. 
Hence the legal and grammatical conclusion would nat- 
urally favor "The Kingdom " as the proper noun for 
CHRIST'S body on earth. "The Kingdoms" occurs 
in the new law just four times, and in harmony with 
the prophets and John the revelator, under the head 
of the "Four Beast Powers or Governments." "The 
churches" occur twenty-three times in the new law, 
never in the old. So there are too many to harmon- 
ize with prophets, apostles and CHRIST. 

JESUS said, " In the mouth of two or three wit- 
nesses every word shall be established." I call atten- 
tion again to the four witnesses who record the words 
and work of Jesus while he was on earth. And I 
note the fact that but one of these recorders is charged 



22 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

with the use of the words "the church," and he only 
three times. 

I now call attention to the well established rule 
of jurisprudence that the superabundance of evidence 
in any case must win or defeat it. 

I now submit, that the testimony in favor of my 
proposition based on Eph. 2:19:22, in the first part 
of this treaties is largely in favor of the noun ' ' King- 
dom " as the proper one to designate the body of 
CHRIST on earth. 

Notwithstanding we have filled the law in the 
production and marshaling of evidence, we are by no 
means at our string's end. We still have evidence 
that we deem invaluable, and which we will introduce 
before we proceed to give our reasons for our faith. 

Men of the last century were found capable of 
delving into the dead languages as well as the living 
ones, and they have stood up in the face of King James 
and his coadjutors in their work of establishing a new 
church of which he could be the head, and they have 
translated the new law from the same language's, and 
they have failed in reproducing the word "church" 
on the ground that it was not in harmony with proph- 
ets, and apostles and CHRIST. I refer to McNight, 
Dodridge and Thomas Campbell, three eminent Pres- 
byterian scholars, and their work met the hearty ap- 
proval of Alexander Campbell, another eminent Pres- 
byterian scholar, but one so conscientious as not to allow 
a church to interfere with his convictions as to the 
right in teaching GOD'S and CHRIST'S law. 

The German translators have corroborated the 
work of the above translators, and I do not believe 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 23 

better men and more able to serve the world could be 
named than those named above. Their characters 
are unblemished, and they were unbiased in their 
translations as is evidenced by their acknowledgement 
of the authority of CHRIST in His Kingdom and their 
ignorance of the institutions so evidently of human 
origin. Contrast the characters of these men with 
that of King James, who fixed his signature to the 
common version, thereby authorizing it as a teacher 
of the world, but, while the common version does con- 
tain the law of CHRIST for the remission of sins and 
for eternal life, it is nevertheless so mystified that men 
have been led into the whirl-pool of opinion and 
have propogated the right af opinion in the matter 
of salvation and thereby made the law of CHRIST 
of none effect. 

I now call attention to three translations of the 
same work and leave my readers to judge between 
them as to the right one to express CHRIST'S wishes. 
First, I quote King James and the revised version. 
Upon this rock I will build my church and the gates 
of hell shall not prevail against it, and I give unto 
you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Matt. 
16:18, ip. Here two distinct institutions are men- 
tioned, but you notice that the keys belong to the 
Kingdom of Heaven. Evidently the word ' 'church' ' 
was introduced here as a synonym for Kingdom, and 
I am sorry to say here, that this view has been ac- 
cepted and taught by a majority of teachers of the 
age. 

I trust that the introduction here of the next 
two translations will remove this stumbling stone, and 



24 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

lift the world to a higher estimate of the living 
CHRIST. Second. I introduce the McKnight, 
Dodridge and Campbell translation. Upon this rock 
I will build My congregation, and the powers of the 
world shall not prevail against it ; and I give unto you 
the Keys of the kingdom of Heaven. This translation 
is in harmony with the Prophet Ezekiel, when he 
speaks of a wheel in a wheel. A local government, 
congregation of people in the Kingdom of Heaven. 
As in State Governments, there are smaller circles of 
government, yet parts of the whole state, so in the 
dominion of CHRIST, yet all governed by the same 
principal. I now introduce a translation in the third 
person with a brief comment, which I trust will aid us 
materially in applying the laws of interpretation and 
instruct us in the use of the measuring reed of Rev. 
u: i. Upon this Rock I will erect My Kingdom, and 
the powers of Earth shall not overcome it, and I give 
unto you the Keys of the Kingdom. Here you notice 
that JESUS is speaking of the establishment of the 
entire Body, and that the emr^sis rests on Keys. 

Hoping that this brief comment will be sufficient 
excuse for presenting the third translation, I now pro- 
ceed to the conclusion that my premises are well 
taken and that a return to the establishment of 
congregations after the Apostolic precedent in name 
and law of government, would be to bring the world 
to Christ as one body, and as a bride adorned for her 
husband. 

"BELOVED, TRY THE SPIRITS." I John 41, 

I trust that my brethren who have stood so nobly 

together for the restoration of the one faith, one 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 2$ 

repentance, one confession and one immersion as the 
law of pardon, and constancy in the apostles' doc- 
trine and breaking of bread and praise, will not fail in 
an earnest effort to restore the Kingdom of Heaven 
and allow the churches to go into the abyss of desola- 
tion to which our glorified Lord has in His law con- 
signed them. Rev. 17-22 chapters inclusive, and so 
fill up their profession in restoring apostolic unity. 
4 ' All things are lawful for me but all things are not 
expedient." Under the constitution of America and 
the laws of custom it may seem lawful to call these 
congregations the churches, but it is not expedient to 
the restoration of the Kingdom of Christ. I wonder 
how many more million of souls will be allowed to 
sleep in death's arms without a complete knowledge 
of Christ's law to save alive the people of earth, and 
how many more millions of wealth at $5.00 a soul will 
be squandered before the people will cut the golden 
cord of the sinking churches, and with the great 
Hauser of the Kingdom of Heaven launch the life- 
boat and rescue the perishing, at the command of the 
Holy Spirit, even putting our hands into the flames 
that envelope them and pull them out, and dash them 
beneath the silvery wave of Heaven's love, and so 
save them, whether you get $5.00 or the curses of the 
captains and generals of the so-called companies and 
regiments, who feast upon the unsuspecting populace. 

My friends, the harvest is ripe, who will thrust in 
the sickle and gather in the sheaves ? 

Do not try longer to try and kill the devil with 
his own club, but do as JESUS did, use the word of 
GOD. 



26 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

Follow Paul's advice to the congregations at Cor- 
inth, 1st Cor. 14:22, 23, and by it produce a rhythm 
that will charm the people and draw them to the 
Heaven of rest. We have noticed at some length the 
Kingdom of Heaven and Babylon as institutions in 
opposition, and have given their definition, origin and 
destination; and I think enough has been said to at- 
tract the attention of the public to the conflict in pro- 
gress between the little stone cut out of the mountain, 
and the mistress of the seven hills, the woman on the 
great beast and the army on white horses, the Gospel 
of King Jesus, and the opinions of men and the King- 
dom of Heaven and the churches. 

Concerning Babylon in particular it may be put 
in these words, it is the most gigantic mass of entan- 
glement of man's opinions that was ever placed before 
a credulous people for digestion. In fact it is indigest- 
ible, except on the basis on the right of opinion in the 
premises. And in that case every man's opinion be- 
comes his infallible guide, and the law of Christ is in- 
validated. I have a question which I think will for- 
ever settle the right of opinion or the right of the law 
of Christ in man's redemption. Who paid the debt 
we owe to God ? A chorus of voices say, we paid the 
debt; yes, all the debt I owe. Well, then, should not 
Jesus have a right to say just how every one should 
get the benefit of His sacrifice and share His glory ? 

AGAIN. Is He a respector of persons ? That 
He should give one law to the early Christians to save 
them by faith, repentance, confession and immersion 
in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, 
then after the death and resurrection of the two wit- 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 2J 

nesses give all the people an opportunity to come into 
His Kingdom as they pleased? No ! ! A thousand 
times No ! No ! No ! The same holds good today 
that His majesty gave to the world nearly two thous- 
and years ago. The Lord's own words will give us a 
definite idea of Babylon. If they say He is in the 
desert, go not after them. If they say He is in the 
secret chamber believe it not. 

What is the desert and what is the secret cham- 
ber ? Evidently the secret chamber is the confessional 
and the desert is the churches. One says come and 
confess your sins to me and I will carry them to God. 
And the other says it does not make any difference 
what church you are in or where you are, just in your 
own way come, and God will save you. I appeal to 
the better sense of my readers. Which do you believe 
to be the surer way to obtain salvation ? To go to 
the confessional and depend on a mortal man as liable 
to err as yourself, and pay him in your own hard 
earned money just what he demands, or go to the 
rambler in the desert who is also ready to tax you for 
lucre sake, and bind upon you a yoke that ere long be- 
comes intolerable, and when you attempt to throw it 
off you will be doomed and damned; or follow the ad- 
vice of the Holy Spirit and the apostles of Jesus and 
enter the open gate of the Kingdom by a straight and 
narrow way of life that is well defined in the impartial 
law of Christ, and sit down with that sweet soul, 
whom Jesus honored and who so kindly told all hu- 
manity where He was at the close of His pilgrimage. 
Said he, "I, John, am your brother in the Kingdom 
and patience of Jesus Christ. ' ' Rev. i :p. No church, 



28 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

no confessional, no desert and no mystery, as it is 
plain and the simple may understand it. Brother 
John stood on the Isle of Patmos and was in the 
Spirit on the Lord's day; and looking down through 
the coming years to the closing scenes of this great 
conflict he saw this desert, wilderness, confusion, 
Babylon, as it is sinking to oblivion, and heard his 
own voice with that of his brethren and the Spirit and 
the Bride calling God's people out of Babylon. 

He saw many good honest people in Babylon who 
truly desired to honor his Christ, and he did not want 
them to go down in ignominy with those who have 
blinded their eyes and stopped their ears to the gospel 
of peace as enunciated by him and his colleagues who 
had given their lives in the battle for peace on earth 
and good will toward men. 

So he gave to humanity a beautiful word pic- 
ture of the scenes in this the closing century of the 
great conflict between rightousness and sin. 

And in the picture he reflects the overcoming in- 
fluence of the Kingdom that He has so gallantly assisted 
in establishing as an asylum from the perils of death. 
Beginning with the 17th chapter of Rev. we have a 
graphic narrative of the defeat of Babylon and the 
victories of the Kingdom of Christ, and the agencies 
by which this achievement is to be attained is by no 
means a mystery. 

DEAR READERS ARE YOU READY FOR 
THE WORK? 

The Kingdom of Heaven must be restored to 
the minds of the people. What is the requirement 
for this great work ? LISTEN ! Be all of one mind 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 29 

having compassion one of another, love as brethren, 
be pitiful and courteous, not rendering evil for evil, 
but blessing. 1st Peter j :8, p. 

This work demands a welding together of every 
soul who from their affections have been born of the 
water and of the Spirit. John 3 .-5. And who desire 
the success of Christ's Kingdom in ruling the world in 
peace and righteousness? Remember dear reader, 
that the mighty mill-stone of oppression in the form 
of human creeds and opinions must be thrown off 
from our necks and these millions now in the wilder- 
ness of the churches and confessionals and plunged 
into the sea of forgetfulness. 

Rev. i8:$-j directs the work to be done by 
Christ's people, and at the same time we must replace 
the mill-stone with the easy yoke and the light burden 
of Christ's love. My brother, how many will you 
kill to sin and make alive to Christ without money 
and without price ? 

Every community where two or three meet in 
Jesus' name may be a mustard seed, a Jerusalem, a 
green bay tree beside the flowing river of life, yielding 
its fruit every month. I am persuaded that the 
preacherless congregations and the congregationless 
preachers would all find their mecca of joy and peace 
in the Holy Spirit, if all would labor as hard to ad- 
vance the Kingdom of Christ as they do to propogate 
and defend their opinions. We not only need to uti- 
lize the central method of work, but we need to bring 
the press into the service and develop the fact that the 
pen and the press are a good team to harness together 
in this mighty conflict, and to this end I suggest the 



30 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

ownership of a press by the people of a sufficient ca- 
pacity to meet all demands, and the employment of 
an editorial staff of sufficient qualification to manage 
the work of the press in the publication of such litera- 
ture as will conduce to the spread of the gospel of 
peace on earth and good will toward men. Such an 
arrangement would enable us to divest our literature 
of derogative personalities and present only such mat- 
ter as would advance the interests of Christ's King- 
dom in the demolition of Babylon. We could take 
the McNight and Dodridge translation and divest it of 
the prefix and affix and put it in plain type, and bind 
it in an attractive cover and send it on its great mis- 
sion at the cost of production and transportation. 
This could be done on the simple plea that the world 
needs and demands a simple, plain law of redemption 
published in all languages spoken so that all may get 
the one faith of the one Christ and that the condi- 
tion given by the Holy Spirit through Christ's apos- 
tles on Pentecost. Such a publication would attract 
the attention and hearty support not only of our own 
beloved American Republic, but the governments of 
the world at large would hold its light, beauty, syme- 
try, and would welcome its circulation among its peo- 
ple with an invocation for Heaven's blessings on the 
people who blessed the world with its hallowed rays. 
Having given the evidence in support of our 
proposition, and shown that Kingdom is the proper 
name for Christ's body on earth, and that church is a 
synonym for Babylon, and (as Brother Clark Bra- 
den says in his tract on proper names) should never 
be used in connection with Christ's people or His 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 3 I 

realm, so it will devolve on me to give a sufficient rea- 
son of the hope that is within me, relative to what I 
have said of these institutions, and why I believe my 
statements to be true. 

Ever since I can recollect anything about the 
work in hand, preachers and people, ( including my- 
self) have plead with GOD to unite His people, 
that the world might be saved. 

And I have noticed that GOD has not answered 
those prayers, and that the petitioners themselves 
have given even less heed to their own expressed 
wishes in the premises, and the result is a continuous 
increase of divisions. This is astounding when we 
open the Bible and read GOD'S ready answer to 
prayer in former ages. And we inquire, why this dif- 
ference ? Is not GOD the same yesterday, today and 
forever ? And we must say that He is the same un- 
changeable being. If this is true, why does He not 
answer these loud and oft repeated petitions ? Shall 
I tell you ? I will at least venture an answer, and I 
believe that all candid readers will accept my answer. 

When GOD began to deal with men through 
chosen heads of families and tribes, He never allowed 
the families and tribes to address Him other than 
through the chosen heads, and when so accosted the 
answer was never withheld. 

The incidents of this character are too numerous, 
and too well known to need repeating here. The an- 
swer then is plain. Those people and their represen- 
tatives complied with GOD'S law. But the people 
who implore GOD in this age to unite His people, 
neither regard His law nor recognize His handiwork. 



32 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

Let us remember that GOD created all things and 
arrayed them in order, and in the age of representa- 
tion He required obedience to His law, and when His 
law was disregarded chaos resulted. Should this be 
less true in the Christian age ? Certainly not. Then 
by the observance of order we shall find a true answer 
to the question. 

Jesus was the last Prophet that GOD sent into 
the world, "the only begotten of the Father, full of 
truth and grace," and in whom GOD said " He was 
well pleased. " This JESUS was the world's repre- 
sentative. He made the final atonement. Just 
before the atonement and when to Him the cross was 
in full view, He petitioned the Father, not for the 
world, but for those whom the Father had given Him. 
John i?:g-ip. That they might be one as He and the 
Father were one, and for those who believed on Him 
through the word of His apostles, that they might be 
one as He and the Father were one. John iy :20, 21. 
Kindly observe the reading of this important lesson 
and keep the pronouns where they belong. 

Now, if GOD did not answer that prayer He 
must do so yet, and no amount of urging will hasten 
the answer. But if He did answer it, the answer is 
recorded and the people can read it or hear it read. 
So in either case these petitions of preachers and peo- 
ple seem absurd, as they plainly are. The careful 
observer would say ' ' These petitioners think that 
GOD ought to have called them in to counsel Him in 
respect to this work." But how much more do these 
petitions seem when we open the BOOK and read 
GOD'S answer to His Son's prayer. After the 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 33 

ascension of JESUS the apostles and friends returned 
to Jerusalem and assembled in an upper room, and 
we read that they were of "ONE ACCORD; Acts 
1:14.. What made them of one accord ? Evidently 
GOD'S divine love and power in answer to His Son's 
prayer in John ij :ii. Of the twelve it is recorded 
that they were of one accord in one place. Acts 2-1. 
The petition in John ij : 20,21 y was answered after the 
first gospel sermon was delivered, and the ' ' devout 
Jews out of every nation under Heaven" and the 
members of the vast assembly had asked the apostle 
what they should do, and the gates of the "New 
Jerusalem," "TheZion of GOD," " The Kingdom 
of Heaven," had been swung ajar and three thousand 
souls had been welcomed into the upper room, the 
record shows that " they were of one accord." 

What made them of "one accord? " Evidently 
the word spoken by the apostles, and the people's 
obedience to the command of the apostles. We have 
noted that GOD'S work is perfect, and therefore 
needs no revision. 

I have produced God's answer to His Son's peti- 
tion for the unity of His people that the world might 
be saved, and I conclude that that was GOD'S way 
of uniting His people then, and as we have no record 
of a change in the method by divine authority I con- 
clude that it is certainly a safe way now. As a mat- 
ter of fact there is no other method recorded in 
CHRIST'S law. Men have devised other ways, but 
these will not answer CHRIST'S purpose, hence they 
produce discord, and conditions that do not conduce 
to the best interests of humanity. 



34 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

I ask, then, which is the easiest and simplest way 
to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, by men's ways or 
the way indicated by the Holy Spirit and the apostle's 
word ? 

Should we ask God to accommodate Himself to 
our opinions ? Or should we like men, accommodate 
ourselves to the law already in vogue ? I believe that 
I am fully justified in saying right here, that God will 
never change that law. Indeed, He cannot change it 
and honor His Son. 

This being true, shall we not heed the command 
of the Holy Spirit in Rev. 18:^ and get out of the 
great Babylon of confusion by entering the Kingdom 
of God's dear Son by the same method and be of 
•' one accord," of one mind, and speak the same 
things, and so build upon the apostles and prophets 
with Christ the key-stone and center of affection, and 
grow in the Lord to a habitation for Christ. 

But I have another reason for my faith in the 
Kingdom of Christ. I wish now to enter the finan- 
cial field and plow awhile. The people are taxed at a 
galling rate for preaching, buildings, home and foreign 
mission work, and the general running paraphernalia, 
yet we are told that we have a ' ' free gospel. ' ' This 
sounds like a dentist's "ad." announcing painless 
dentistry. It is of course painless to the dentist. It 
is a gross absurdity. By this I do not mean to dis- 
courage liberality in Christians, far from that, but 
that I may show the gross absurdity of the churches 
in their ecclesiastical domination for money. 

Take an example. A town of one thousand pop- 
ulation representing five churches. Each one wants 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 35 

a house of its own, all the people are asked to con- 
tribute, and do, with a result of five new buildings, 
and these are called churches. So we have now five 
churches in five churches. But, this is the ecclesias- 
tical wisdom of men, hence you see the absurdity. 
Each one has a name and a law peculiar to itself, 
none of which are in harmony with apostles, proph- 
ets or Christ. But they stand on the plea that the 
more and the better the church facilities, the greater 
the enhancement in properties value, in the attraction 
of home-seekers. All advertise these wonderful ad- 
vantages for the same end, self aggrandizement. 
Notice the cost. One house costs $5,000, one $3,000, 
and two others $1,500 each, and the fifth one cost 
$1,000, a total of $12,000. Five preachers whose 
combined salaries are $3,300 per annum, janitor's 
fee $300. Fuel and lights $300. Incidentals $250. 
Bishops and Presiding Elder's $250. Home and For- 
eign Missionary and Sunday school work $500. A 
total of $17,250, Deduct $12,000 for buildings and 
we have an expenditure of $5,250 annually. This is 
a conservative estimate and does not include evangel- 
istic, college, repairs on the material, ecclesia and in- 
surance. This is simply an example to show the fab- 
ulous sums of money expended on this ecclesiastical 
Babylon in one small town each year simply to en- 
hance property value, and to create a rivalry for su- 
premacy. 

But I have a more serious reason than a mere 
financial consideration. It is the cost in SOULS. 
Look at it dear reader with your eyes wide open. 
One church holds a meeting, the best and most noted 



2,6 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

evangelist that can be procured is engaged at from 
$20 to $25 per week and expenses and of course the 
dear people are expected to raise the funds, and do. 
The gospel preached is * 'salvation by faith alone." 
One hundred souls are said to be saved, and they are 
directed to choose their church, (for four of them have 
federated and the fifth will have nothing to do with 
the unholy thing) because they have been taught that 
these churches are branches of the one church, and 
that one is as good as the other. 

Baptism has been presented as a non-essential, a 
church ordinance, and an immersion for the remission 
of sins has been flatly denied. So the converts take 
their choice, and as expected seventy-five go to the 
church that warmed and fed them, and twenty-five 
divide up between the other three churches. The ma- 
jority of them are sprinkled or poured upon. Some 
demand an immersion because Jesus was immersed. 
A smaller number recognize the sovereignty of Christ 
in the premises and demand an immersion in the name 
of Christ for the remission of sins, thus declaring that 
the doctrine of salvation by faith alone is not true, 
and of course are looked upon with scorn by preachers 
and people of the " orthodoxy?" 

One year has elapsed, and the majority of the 
converts are lost, and one of the other churches calls 
in an evangelist to hunt up the lost sheep. This 
time the doctrine is "salvation by grace alone," re- 
sulting in a repetition of former experiences, and a 
consequent division of opinion on the part of preach- 
ers and the people, because the preacher has said, 
"oh, well, we can't all see alike anyway," and the 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 37 

people have said, " Amen." This is church work ex- 
emplified. But in this same town there lives a read- 
ing, thinking class of people that none of the churches 
could reach, yet preachers and people prayed for and 
plead with them; but alas ! they have been assigned a 
place in infidelity. Poor people ! beyond the reach of 
God and man. 

Well, my dear hearers, do you wonder at what 
* ' orthodoxy ' ' calls « ' infidelity ? ' ' This class of infi- 
dels have fed and thriven on the ' ' twaddle ' ' of these 
church theories, and have settled down to the conclu- 
sion that if these church theories are true, and will 
save the church, preacher and adherents, their own 
theories and opinions are just as good, and Christ 
must accept them too, and they need not be burdened 
with a church yoke which they see, at best, is a galling 
yoke. Do you wonder that these churches are chang- 
ing their creeds, and that many of them are now de- 
manding federation ? 

Do you not see that these movements express a 
desire on the part of church adherents to go down 
together under the wheels of their own juggernaut, 
which in turn is being run down by the gospel of 
the * 4 one body' ' of an open bible, that is coming in 
the power and glory of Heaven's noon-day sun ? 

They are by their own acts crying for the hills 
and the rocks of their own creation to fall upon them 
and hide them from the presence of the millions of 
souls that have been deceived by the vagaries taught 
by these ecclesiastical institutions in the name of the 
King of Peace; yet no peace, but instead, wars and 
rumors of war, tumults, disaster and death. This is 



38 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

an awful picture. God's laws always prevailed under 
His personal and prophetic reign, and we can count 
on the fact that His Son's law will not be found want- 
ing in any particular. 

All who from their affections, obey the command- 
ments of the apostles, regardless of church affilia- 
tions and teachings, will find themselves in the 
Kingdom of Heaven. They will form a congrega- 
tion and provide themselves an assembly room, under 
apostolic teaching and be in full possession of the 
only remedy for sin, and on the only basis that 
Heaven's court has devised and made known to the 
human family. 

Listen to Jesus. "I am the door;" "all that 
precede me are thieves and robbers; by me if any 
man enter in he shall find rest, but he that climbeth 
up some other way the same is a thief and a robber." 
Significant lauguage ! How many try to get before 
Christ, and how many try climbing up some other 
way? Do you wonder dear readers, that I come be- 
fore you with this plea ? 

The Kingdom of our glorified Lord must be pre- 
sented, defended and respected. Is not the one way 
of the apostles better than the many ways of the 
churches ? 

Preachers and people have to apologize for their 
churches and vagaries they teach, but no apology 
need be made for the Kingdom of Heaven nor its 
plain, simple and effective lav/. I believe you all see 
the very distinguished difference. 

But some may ask is the cost of saving souls in 
the Kindom of Heaven less than in the churches ? 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 39 

I answer yes ! ! ! 

Do you ask how ? 

Listen ! In our town of one thousand inhabi- 
tants, instead of five material ecclesias we would 
have one auditorium for the assembly of the brother- 
hood of the town and vicinity at a cost of $6,000, 
just one-half the cost of the five churches, and we 
would have from ten to one hundred ministers, any 
one of whom we would delight to have address us, 
and out of the entire congregation we would be able 
to choose a man full of the spirit and wisdom whom 
we would delight to have as an overseer and at a cost 
of $800 per annum, and a house to live in, and he 
would be the servant of all. One house to light, heat, 
insure and keep in repair, and one janitor. 

We would have one congregation, one gospel, and 
one law of entrance and one law of development, and 
one hope. 

We would all belong to the Lord and our hold- 
ings would be His and He would do with us and 
our property just as He did with the loaves and the 
fishes, and we would see to it that the fragments 
were cared for and utilized. To learn the proof of 
what we have said with reference to the cost, we will 
notice the life of Christ and His apostles. We never 
read of Jesus asking His auditors for a penny save for 
an illustration, or asking for material save to serve 
the people. Who ever heard of an apostle charging 
$20 per week for holding a meeting, and then taking 
up a collection every night to defray expenses ? Or 
who ever read in the Book where they commanded 
one of their adherents so to do ? 



40 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

Yet the gospel went as if on wings. To be 
sure it spread through persecution, but very many 
of its persecutors became its most ardent advocates, 
of whom brother Paul seems to be chief. One exam- 
ple in the life of Jesus may suffice to give emphasis to 
this, that Jesus asked for a piece of money, and when 
it had been given Him, He asked them whose image 
was stamped on it, and they said Caesar's, then said 
Jesus, render to Caesar the things that belong to him 
and to God that which is God's. I conclude that this 
should be no less true in the Kingdom of Christ. 

Paul set a worthy example of industry and self 
support, when he was in need, by making tents, and 
when it was proper to do so, and he knew that his 
congregations were in readiness for the contingency, 
he drew on their stock of love, and where they were 
deficient in the proper instruction in this line he did 
not fail to give them the needed advice. 

Said he, lay by you in store on the first day of 
the week, that no gathering be needed when I come. 
ist Cor. 16:1, 4.. Again Paul said, " If a man will 
not work, neither shall he eat. ' ' Again. ' 'Let each one 
labor that he may have to give to him that needeth." 
Paul would have the entire brotherhood follow him as 
he followed Christ. Phil. 3; 16, ij and ^.-9 and ist 
Thess. 1:6. 

The first congregation of members of the King- 
dom of Heaven were instructed by the Holy Spirit 
and the apostles to choose wise and spiritual men to 
manage their business affairs. Do you not think it 
would be quite safe to conclude that all other congre- 
gations of disciples pattern after that one ? Notice ! 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS, ANSWERED. 4 1 

God created all things for His own glory and the good 
of humanity. He gave this world to man to occupy, 
subdue and replenish for himself and his posterity. 
He created all men equal. And it was no more or no 
less than the lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh and 
the pride of life that begot in men a greed for selfish 
gain and princely domain. 

Here is the failing of the Christian age. 

When the great realm of God's love and Heav- 
en's pride was brought in view many of the devout 
Jews had grown quite wealthy, and when the Christ 
love had been declared to them they were wise enough 
to see their future safety and interests in the Kingdom 
of Heaven, and entered by the open gate, thus throw- 
ing around them and theirs the protection of that in- 
stitution. 

In plain English they immersed their pocket- 
books, property and all. They realized that they and 
theirs belonged to Christ by right of purchase. 

No lack was experienced, and no need was unat- 
tended, and all rejoiced in the presence of an open 
tomb, and in the promise of their Lord's return to 
His Eden of love. Having food and raiment they 
were content, and their enjoyment had both the bless- 
ing of Heaven and the approval of men. Acts 2 :/f.y. 

They all realized that it was more blessed to give 
than to receive. Notice now dear readers that these 
people were out of every nation under Heaven and 
were of different tongues. But now they are all of 
one mind, of one accord, as we shall see farther on, 
and they all went everywhere teaching as they went; 
and every one brought into the Kingdom of Christ 



42 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

confessed that he and his were Christ's and Christ's 
was God's, and in so doing could realize a more beau- 
tiful life and home. 

To them Christ's yoke was easy and His burden 
light. 

All were glad that jesus would come back and 
give them the world that he had restored to its para- 
disiacal state and that Jesus and His Father would be 
the light of it. Rev. 21 : 23 and 22:5. 

I think now that you can see that it is much 
easier for all the people to support one government 
with its simple apartments than for all to support 
nearly two hundred different governments with their 
manifold and complicated divisions. 

Certainly everyone can see that it is easier to en- 
ter the Kingdom of Heaven than it is to enter the door 
of any church. We can all see too, that the support 
of brethren in the extention department with them 
was an easy problem; and with present facilities 
should be no greater burden. 

I would urge that gospel teachers and congrega- 
tions cease their unequal and unreasonable warfare 
among themselves and with one accord reproduce the 
power and glory of Christ's Kingdom and His sover- 
eign right to all that we have and are, that we may 
succeed in winning the world to Christ and shelter 
them in the upper room of His glory. 

Remember that it was in an upper room that 
God answered the first division of His Son's prayer; 
recorded injolm 17:11, Acts 1:14. And when these 
united ones unlocked the gate of the Kingdom of 
Heaven and people of every nation entered its port- 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 43 

als, God met them and answered the second division, 
John 17:20, 21 and Acts 2:4.6. 

And the world admired the work. Dear people, 
could we but lay aside the prejudices and present 
opinions and accept and obey the injunction of God's 
Holy Spirit in this the last work day of the Christ 
time the same effect will be the result. You have but 
to recognize the fact that the churches are the mill- 
stones about your necks and that the Babylon of Rev- 
elation is yours to destroy, and all of its cumbrous 
paraphernalia will by you be exchanged for the ease 
and comfort of beautiful homes, and the glories of 
peace on earth and good will toward men. 

Here is the patience of the saints. Here you 
beat your swords into plowshares and your spears 
into pruninghooks. 

Ekklesia, - - Church. 

Ekkynoien, - - Congregation. 

Bazleian, - - Kingdom. 

Bast lei an, - - Kingdoms. 

Which would you rather be in, a church built by 
men, or the Kingdom of Heaven ruled by Christ? It 
is decision day. It costs in money values more than 
two hundred times as much to support the churches 
as it does to support the Kingdom of Heaven with its 
one door, one Lord and one law. Besides it is much 
easier to distinguish it and it will save a million souls 
while the different churches are saving one, and the 
million souls thus saved will not cost the membership 
as much as it costs the church to save one soul. Do 



44 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

you ask why ? I answer, what Paul said to the breth- 
ren at Corinth was true then, and in the very nature 
of the case must be true now, take your testaments 
and turn with me to ist Cor. 14:22-25 and read care- 
fully with me. Now let us read Phil. 1 :zy y 2:2, 
5:9-11, 3 :i6 and 4.: 2. Now you are at liberty to 
choose between the two. Babylon must go. Get on 
higher ground or go down with her. 

In closing this attempt at the restoration of the 
Kingdom of Heaven to the minds and affections of a 
world of intelligent people, I do not claim priority, 
neither do I follow the pattern of uninspired men. 
For I believe many good people both in and out of the 
churches have spent much time in reflection on the 
situation, but have never been able to give ex- 
pression sufficiently marked to give credence to the 
Kingdom of Heaven independent of and apart from 
the churches. And I do not doubt that many noble 
minded ministers of all denominations have given 
much thought to this work, but like myself have vainly 
tried to complete a union on a church, which to our 
chagrin we have signally failed to accomplish. 

Coming as I have through the churches from in- 
fancy and seeking many apologies for the existence 
of my church as all church preachers have to do, it 
may seem strange that I have caught the idea of mak- 
ing the distinction that I have presented to your minds. 
But dear people, I find no closed doors to the man or 
woman in Christ who keeps an open Bible before them 
and between them and a reading, thinking public. 

With a desire to close the mouths of critics from 
every stage of life, and cause the public to stand in 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 45 

awe of a slain but risen Christ, a sealed but open 
tomb, and an absent but returning and glory-crowned 
King, and the gathering of nations of earth to His 
presence to account to Him for the trust He has so 
graciously given each one with which to gain not only 
the encomium He shall pronounce: 

" Well done good and faithful servant," but the 
everlasting reward of an inheritance incorruptible and 
unfading, and my eagerness to enter open doors with 
the measuring reed, and using it with common sense, 
I have gained the information imparted in this work, 
and I assure you dear reader that I impart it with the 
same eagerness that I sought it, that the world may 
with me be brought to rejoice in the victories that have 
been and are being, and are yet to be. achieved by an 
united and happified people who have so eagerly 
sought rest and found none, 'till by the glad tidings of 
a Christ who did give to a needy world an impar- 
tial code by which all might enjoy the riches of His 
love. Having by His rich love obtained this knowl- 
edge I desire its extension to all humanity in every 
language from the platform and through the press 
and to this end I dedicate my efforts, in the name of 
Him whose right it is to clain the homage of every in- 
habitant of earth, to the distinguishing features of the 
Kingdom of our risen Lord and the realm of His 
satanic majesty, the glories of the one and the de- 
baucheries of the other. That by these features I 
may help suffering humanity to a position in our 
world, where they may dwell, not under the vine 
and fig-tree of their own planting, or the planting 
of uninspired men, but under the vine and fig-tree 



46 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

planted by our glory-crowned King in His vineyard in 
Jerusalem in Palestine. 

Not in a secret chamber, not on the seven hills 
of Rome, not in a desert or wilderness of men's 
opinions, but in Jerusalem, by the command of the 
Son of God who said to His apostles, "I am the 
vine and ye are the branches, you shall go and pro- 
duce fruit and your fruit shall not perish." Again 
He said "he that receiveth you receiveth me, and 
he that receiveth me receiveth Him that sent me." 

We note here that our Lord prayed for all who 
honored Him through the word by His apostles, and 
that they might be "one" as He and the Father 
were one, and before He left them He commanded 
them to stay in Jerusalem 'till He sent the promise 
of the Father upon them and then He told them to 
commence their work in Jerusalem and make disci- 
ples in all nations. 

Remember the order of their work. Jerusalem, 
Judea, Samaria and all the world. Jesus command- 
ed them to immerse their converts, and the record 
shows that they did immerse the adherents to the 
gospel in the name of Jesus Christ for the remis- 
sion of sins. Acts 2:38. 

The record also shows that they not only car- 
ried out their orders, but commanded the brother- 
hood to do the same. 

Now friends, my conclusion is, that if these men 
carried out their Lord's command, they not only 
went into all the world then inhabited by men, and 
in the order named, but they gave to every tribe and 
nation a complete law of pardon, and a complete 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 47 

law by which all could be governed in the King- 
dom that they established. 

You will all admit that the law they gave to men 
then brought to its adherents freedom from sin and 
gave perfect liberty in Christ. And to be sure they 
needed no more, and anything less would not suffice 
to make them perfectly safe and happy. 

Now we have no record of any Divine change in 
this law, hence it will most assuredly produce the 
same effect now. So anything less is not enough and 
anything more is superfluous. 

Now as men in the secret chamber and in the des- 
ert both require more and less in their codes, I con- 
clude, my dear reader, that it is much safer for people 
who desire salvation from sin to follow the teaching 
of the inspired apostles of Jesus. 

I repeat here that " order is Heaven's first law," 
and add that it is Heaven's best law. 

No military, scientific or mechanical achievement 
has ever been attained that was not based upon an 
impregnable foundation and carried to its climax by 
unswerving compliance to a well defined law. 

If this be true in temporal affairs why should it 
not be true in spiritual affairs ? 

No one is willing to openly and plainly charge 
the God of our creation with inaccuracy or incompe- 
tency; yet this is the state of affairs that the churches 
have produced. 

We can but charge the inaccuracies of this work 
to the prince of the power of the air, though well ap- 
prised of ultimate defeat, he persistently wields his 
unequal warfare on the ground of one success, we note 



48 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

that he always uses the same trusty weapon. But 
no history records a complete success of this arch-de- 
mon against the God of creation or His beloved Son. 
It is a well known principle in physiology that fatal 
diseases always attack the weaker portions of the 
body. And this law is well understood by satan who 
perpetrates his nefarious work in the growing fields of 
human intellect, attacking the weaker but never the 
stronger except through sympathy for the weaker. 
So well is this theory known that the mere mention of 
it discovers its scope. Two or three references to the 
Bible record will sufficiently illustrate the fact. 

Satan attacked Eve and out of sympathy for her, 
debased Adam, and so dispelled God's best piece of 
workmanship through the lust of the eye, the lust of 
the flesh and the pride of the life. Esau lost his 
birthright by the. same process. The Hebrew children 
were cast into the heated furnace at the behest of a 
human bigot dominated by the same influence. And 
this influence opened the lion's den for Daniel and 
sealed it after him, and in various ways slew God's 
prophets of old. 

Satan attempted the overthrow of the Christ by 
appealing to Him to use His power to satisfy the 
appetite, and when he failed in this he made the 
second attempt by calling on Christ tp perform a 
miracle that would have attracted human applause, 
but was warned by God's written law against tempt- 
ing God. Still undaunted, he leads Christ to a 
mountain top and makes a last appeal by pointing to 
the landscape and its beauty, offering Jesus the ruler- 
ship of the world for His homage. Men in their desire 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 49 

for gain and honor would doubtless have yielded here 
as they have in very many instances before and since. 
But not so with the Champion of the wandering fam- 
ily. His appeal was, * * It is written; thou shalt wor- 
ship the Lord thy God and Him only shalt thou 
serve." 

Failing here, satan possessed both Jew and Gen- 
tile and marshaled them to kill the Christ and seal 
Him in a tomb. But after his work was accomplished 
the whole world was illuminated with Christ's power 
when the sealed tomb burst open on the morning of 
the first day of the week, and the Son of God came 
forth in fulfillment of His Father's promise, that the 
seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head, 
and in fulfillment of Christ's own words to Mary and 
His disciples, "I am the resurrection;" "I have 
power to lay my life down and I have power to take 
it again." Satan's next attempt was to destroy the 
disciples of Christ. 

So he scattered them over the world through the 
persecution of Stephen. But to his own chagrin, the 
more they scattered the faster the sacred flame of 
Christ's love fastened itself on the affections of the 
race, 'till the world was about to be overwhelmed 
with its light and glory. 

The last apostle dies of old age and satan takes 
courage. 

Jesus is gone and His apostles are dead. Satan 
now attacks the only two living witnesses of God and 
Christ. 

He remembers that the law of God and the testi- 
mony of Jesus requires two witnesses and that these 



50 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED 1 , 

are contained in the minds of living people and re- 
corded in books. 

So his courage revives, and through human dupes 
for self-glory and ruling power, he slays the Christ- 
ians and burns the books to the extent that the law 
and the testimony are out of the reach of the people, 
and Christians so few that satan becomes chief mogul, 
and the story of the dark ages swell the world's his- 
tory with sin's blighting curse of destruction and 
death. 

But thanks to the Son of God who said, "My 
words are Spirit and they are Life." 

He also said, * 4 If a house be divided against it- 
self it cannot stand." Satan divides his own house 
and the great whirl-pool of sectarian ecclesiasticism 
resulted. Thanks to the life in the written word and 
the Christ spirit remaining in the breasts of honest 
men. The two witnesses, the law of God and the 
testimony of Jesus Christ came to life, and since their 
resurrection, satan has never been able to concert his 
forces, but instead, divisions have increased. 

Jesus has shown His ability through the life and 
spirit of His word to create in the minds of His ad- 
herents a great desire for concerted action, and it 
only needs a continuation of this concerted following 
of Christ by the word of His apostles to defeat the 
devil's fallacies, whether presented by himself or his 
tools, either individually or in collective bodies of ec- 
clesiastical persuasion or of the world. 

We remember that God said that He would set 
up a Kingdom that would rule the world. And we 
have tested His fidelity to His word in the investi- 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 5 I 

gation of the subject of this work sufficiently to 
satisfy us, and we trust our readers will be as well sat- 
isfied that "He will put all things under His Son's 
control." 

It would take volumes to cover the necessity of 
the propagation of the Kingdom of Heaven as against 
the churches in defense of its principles and develop- 
ment in detail. But it only requires a smali space to 
show the supremacy of death over the physical or- 
ganism. Death makes only one visit into a commun- 
ity and awes into silence, and excites the sympathies 
of the entire circle of friends, and even the enemy of 
the deceased will bow the head. We all admit that 
there is no evading this fatal arrow that sin has hurled 
into the human camp. It is also true that God's law 
of love and protection has anticipated and intercepted 
sins power by placing before the human family an 
open grave, and that grave the one that satan had 
sealed by the highest authority the world has ever 
known to be vested in men by his satanic majesty. 

Yet by the power of man's creator and the love 
of an elder brother, that tomb stands open and at its 
portals is stationed the attending angels proclaiming 
the resurrection of the Son of God. How appropri- 
ate this, since angels announced His birth to the 
Shepards on Judea's plain, that they should announce 
His birth from death's embrace and the tomb's dark 
cell. 

Christ has announced His own return to the 
world and its purpose. 

These facts being easily comprehended and 
frankly admitted, would it seem strange for the Son 



52 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

of God who broke the human seal from the door of 
the grave, and thus defeated satan's greatest attempt, 
to snatch God's children from His embrace and seal 
them up in dark despair, to carry out His promise 
through His prophet, [Isaiah 28:22) of a short work of 
righteousness in man's release from sin's domain, and 
exhibit it by His apostle Paul in Rom. p:28. 

This short work is briefly comprehended in that 
emphatic statement of Paul to the Hebrew brethren 
in Heb. 10:12-25. And this faithful servant of Jesus 
did not forget to add in this connection a solemn but 
loving and forceful warning, and emphasize it by an 
illustration that every Jew was familiar with. Heb. 
1 0-2 6 -j 1. 

The Christian warfare, and the necessity of pa- 
tient endurance, undaunted courage and confident 
success, is briefly presented in closing the chapter. 

To get into the Kingdom of Christ is an easy pro- 
cess, and may be put in this simple form: 

"Faith in Jesus Christ, a hearty public confes- 
sion of His sovereignty, and a burial in His name for 
the remission of sins." Acts 2:38 ; 8 .-35-38 ; 16:30- 
33; ip:i-6 and Rom. 6:3-5 and Col. 2:12. Then 
Paul in his address to the congregation at Galatia 
reaches the climax in these words: " For as many of 
you as have been immersed into Christ have put on 
Christ, ' ' I quote immersed from McKnight and Dod- 
ridge, the German * ' Undertangen " and the Ameri- 
can Bible translations. Jesus said, in the mouth of 
two or three witnesses every word shall be estab- 
lished. I have produced the required testimony in 
proof of my statements, argument and reasoning 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 53 

relative to this most important of all governments. 
Let the testimony stand. 

But to the reason. 

No man can deny that a burial in water in the 
name of Jesus is baptism. All admit it. 

A large portion of the negro race demand an im- 
mersion for baptism; many of the poor white people 
will admit of no other kind than a burial in water; and 
not a few of the more intelligent and wealthy recog- 
nize immersion as the only legal form. The people 
that Americans call heathens, when shown the script- 
ures referred to above, demand an immersion and one 
body. Then why should a small part of the family 
known as the higher criticism oppose the law of Christ 
and abuse common sense, other than for the sole pur- 
pose of inaugurating and perpetuating a great Baby- 
lon of confusion and establishing ecclesiastical bodies 
under delusive laws for the purpose of self-aggrandize- 
ment and the human glory of being Lords over God's 
heritage. 

Jesus recognized this class of teachers and dis- 
covered them to public view when He said, "If the 
blind lead the blind both shall fall into the ditch." 
There are the wilfully blind and there are the igno- 
rantly blind, the latter are so because the former 
willed it so. 

My earnest appeal is to the great mass of the 
brethren of the one body to arise at the command of 
the Holy Spirit in Rev. 18 .-4.-8, as one man to spread 
from their various centers the glad tidings of the 
Kingdom of Heaven with its peace on earth and good 
will toward men, and rescue the perishing by opening 



54 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

the blind eyes, and by sound and simple doctrine, un- 
stop the deaf ears and with appeals of love break the 
sealed affections, and sterilize and illuminate them 
with the gospel of liberty, thus making them kings 
and priests through the blood of Christ. 

The law of Christian development is no more 
complicated than the law of entrance into the King- 
dom, both are easy to comprehend. 

Jesus said, "the way is so plain that the simplest 
need not err in it." This is not true of the Babylon- 
ish ways. 

Jesus said His way was a narrow way. Baby-- 
Ion's ways are broad ways. Jesus said His way was 
a straight way. This is not true of the ways of the 
institutions of men, for they are crooked and compli- 
cated. 

In the Kingdom of Heaven the citizens can add 
to their faith the recorded virtues penned by the in- 
spired Peter, 2nd Peter 1:5-7. 

While in the churches the bishops, shepherds, 
overseers and priests must add their help to the ad- 
herents which is usually a complicated mass of incom- 
prehensibles, that bother the brain and worry the life 
of the constituent only to get a tip. 

The gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven is a free 
gospel. That of the churches is by measure, so much 
gospel for so much money. And that means money 
or no gospel, but condemnation. 

Only a few selects can preach in the churches, 
while all of the members of the "one body" of 
Heaven's love may tell the good news contained in 
the one code. 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 55 

LISTEN ! ! ! 

Then they that were scattered abroad went every- 
where preaching the word. Acts 8:1-4. 

After the plan of salvation had been given the 
people were commanded to save themselves. It must 
have been a simple way and the agencies employed 
simple and easy of access, or the common people 
could not have understood or utilized them, and mind 
you, here all nationalities came into one body by the 
same plan. 

In the apostolic age the new born babes grew by 
the sincere milk of the word. In the churches they 
feed on catechisms and various concoctions originat- 
ing in the brains of men who do not think for them- 
selves, only for a place, and much less for the peo- 
ple except for their money. 

Christians became able by the milk of the word 
to put on the whole armor of righteousness and war 
a good warfare. 

The church members do not learn to put on 
the church armor and war a warfare except to 
their financial and spiritual detriment. The mem- 
bers of the Kingdom of Heaven could work out 
their own salvation, knowing that Christ worked in 
them both to will and to do of His good pleasure. 
They loved the Christ and disdained to dishonor Him. 

Brother John in his final address to the con- 
gregations, told them that the Spirit and the Bride 
both bade the people come, and all that heard 
were to extend the invitation, and the thirsty were 
to be permitted to drink of the water of life 
freely. 

L. ° f c ' 



56 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

All of these instructions have been violated one 
way or another by the churches. See the eight- 
eenth chapter of Revelations for the authority, power 
and agencies to overthrow the Babylon of churches 
and consequent confusion of doctrines, and to re- 
store the beauties and simplicity of CHRIST'S 
Kingdom. CHRIST'S orders were obeyed by the 
Holy Spirit and the apostles. And since the au- 
thority to guide the world into all RIGHTEOUS- 
NESS was by CHRIST invested in the Holy Spirit 
and the apostles, it will certainly be safe to accept 
their instructions, obey their commands, and leave 
the results with CHRIST. 

Finally, I call upon you my dear readers, especi- 
ally those of you who profess to be of the "one body," 
to give good heed to the word of the inspired apostles, 
study it, divide it right, do the work of teaching and 
forget not the assembling of yourselves together for 
song and thanksgiving and for breaking the loaf and 
exhortation and fellowship. 

Be of one mind, of one accord, speaking the 
same thing, and the world will declare that CHRIST 
is in you, and will turn into the common tabernacle 
and dwell in the tents of righteo?isness and peace. 

As Jesus did the will of His Father in Heaven, 
we should do Jesus' will. 

Stand fast in the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
and wait together patiently till He comes. Amen. 



CODE. 

I now leave all to follow the suggestions already 
made, and those set forth in the brief outline 
of a code from the new law of life in CHRIST, 
to-wit : 

It would seem out of place, after the foregoing 
exposition of evidence and reason thrown athwart the 
church work and in favor of the Kingdom of Heaven, 
not to at least suggest a code of introduction and in- 
ternal government, that on the face of it, would be in 
keeping with prophets, apostles and Christ, as a wise 
code to adopt in every congregation of disciples in 
every state and clime, and from which no deviation 
should be tolerated. 

Permit me then, dear readers, to submit for pub- 
lic consideration, the following : Read Isa. 62 and 
66, Ezek. 3:17-21, Ezek. 13:1-10 and 34:1-12; this 
warning is repeated in Ezek. 33 .'3-16. 

The inequality of man's ways and the equality 
of GOD'S ways are graphically shown in Ezek. 33:17- 
20. JESUS, the new law-giver, mediator and repre- 
sentative between God and man, selected his witnes- 
ses from willing followers, Matt. x:i-4; Mark 3:13; 
Luke 6:13; John 6:jo. 

He commissioned these men and sent them into 
all the world to proclaim His law, Matt. xvi:i$; 
xviii:i8 ; Mark xvi:ij; John xx .-23. 



5§ MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

These are they for whom JESUS prayed in 
John i J ;6-ip. 

He also prayed for those who obeyed Him 
through the word of His witnesses, John ij : 20-21. 
These scriptures make the duty of all men clear. We 
should heed the voice of the Holy Spirit as it spoke 
through these witnesses, and ourselves obey their 
command as did the devout Jews out of every nation 
under Heaven and the members of the multitude that 
heard them on the day of Pentecost {Acts 2:1-13). 
These all heard^the same thing in their own tongue 
and accepted the apostle's word and obeyed their 
commandment and were of " one accord " {Acts 2:37- 
4.J). I most heartily recommend the same remedy 
for human defects in blotting out the sins of the peo- 
ple and uniting them in "one body" and making them 
all of Ki one mind. " 

Having noticed the work of the twelve apostles 
of JESUS in the remission of sins, we will now 
notice what Paul says to Christians in three of his 
letters, "Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of 
me," I Cor. 4:16 and //:/, and Phil. 3:17. In I 
Thes.j he groups himself with Silvanus and Timo- 
theus and the LORD in these words, "and ye became 
followers of us and of the LORD, having received the 
word in much affliction with joy in the Holy Spirit." 
In the nth chapter and 1st verse Paul exhorts the 
Corinthian congregation to follow him in these words: 
"Be ye followers of me as I am of CHRIST." 
Here he commends them for their remembrance of 
him and their faithfulness in keeping the ordinances 
as he had delivered them to this congregation. This 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 59 

is clearly pointed out in I Cor. 7:17, in these words: 
4 'But as GOD has distributed to every one, so let him 
walk, and so ordain I in all congregations," 

Paul sent Timothy to keep these Corinthian 
brethren in remembrance of his teaching in these 
words: "For this have I sent unto you Timotheus 
who is my beloved son, and faithful in the LORD, 
who shall bring you in remembrance of my ways 
which be in CHRIST as I teach everywhere in every 
congregation. ' ' Acts 16:4. shows that Paul and Timo- 
theus delivered the decrees they had received of the 
apostles and elders in Jerusalem. These decrees 
must be determined by reference to Acts 15:23-29, the 
29th verse puts the whole matter of abstinence tersely 
and forcibly; read it. The fruits of the flesh and of 
the Spirit are fully detailed in Gal. j:ip-2j. The 
growth in the Kingdom of Heaven is very graphically 
stated by Peter in his 2nd letter, 1:5-8, and the result 
of a lack of these things is given in the 9th verse. 

The people of this age are as wise as the people 
of the early Christian age, and can, like them, 
see alike, and act alike, with reference to salvation, 
and with reference to temporal affairs use good sanc- 
tified common sense, just like those people did, and 
allow JESUS to take care of His part of the con- 
tract, with the assurance that His part will be done, 
and that it will meet our hearty approval. 

Simple enough, yet effectual. 



6o MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

THE SUM TOTAL. 
Teaching the gospel. 
Hearing and believing it. 
Repenting. 
Confessing Christ. 

Immersion in His name for remission of sins. 
Feeding on the Word of God and of Christ. 
Growing by the Word. 
Putting on the whole armor of righteousness. 



QUESTIONS. 

If all the people would obey the Holy Spirit, and 
get into one body, the Kingdom of Heaven, what will 
we do with the churches, or (as you have denominated 
them) material ecclesias? I answer by asking what 
the Isrealites did with the dwellings, public meeting 
houses, business houses, wells and vineyards, when 
they took possession of the land of Canaan ? It oc- 
curs to me that good use will come of them, as they 
are already the property of the people, the people 
can be trusted to do with them what they deem best 
in the light of all righteousness and true holiness. 

I would suggest, however, that many of them 
could be used as institutions of learning and reading 
halls, local hospitals for those who need or may need 
public aid, old people's homes, and still others to 
courts, business or private uses, in which latter case 
the common treasury would be replenished to the de- 
gree at least of the nominal value per building. The 
lots on which these buildings stand, when vacated by 
the removal of the buildings, could be either returned 
to the original land owner, or could be sold at a nom- 
inal price or given to some needy brother or sister for 
a home, or business place. In many instances the 
lot could be added to the burying ground so there 
would be good come of this property. 

Well, what disposition would you make of the 



62 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

preachers, as this new plan would put many of them 
out of a job? Great question this. But I can answer 
it. We are sadly in need of staunch Christian gentle- 
men at the helm of state and nation, president, vice- 
president and cabinet, governor's and aids with their 
cabinets, district, and congressmen at large, represent- 
atives and officials in lower circles, as judges, clerks, 
treasurers, sheriffs, constables, and surgeons. Plenty 
of places for all, and the old and worn out preachers 
and widows would be better cared for than nine out 
of ten are cared for now by the churches. Many 
could be used in the school rooms and home and for- 
eign missionary work, at as good wages or better than 
they get now. 

Well, there are many in all of these churches 
who have died without a knowledge of this one gospel 
and its importance, therefore have never been im- 
mersed. What will become of them ? This I con- 
sider a very grave question, and admits of more than 
one answer. But as a Christian teacher, I must an- 
swer this question or I am a failure. Brother Peter 
bids me to "sanctify the LORD CHRIST in my af- 
fections, and be ready to give an answer to him that 
asketh with meekness and love." So if I fail here, I 
have not learned my lesson and must admit it. If we 
have obeyed from the affections the form given us by 
the apostles, will we, not then be in the spirit of our 
master and possess that faith that lays hold on the 
promise of CHRIST, and will we not love all men as 
CHRIST did? Yes, you say. All right then, we 
shall try and answer the question from a scriptural 
standpoint. 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 63 

God showed His love for man when He slew the 
animal to get its pelt to make a coat for our first 
parents. This act not only showed GOD'S love for 
the creatures of His own make and image, but His 
hatred for sin. The ark was another demonstration 
of His love for man and His dislike to sin. After 
Noah had rendered a thank-offering of clean beasts 
and fowls, GOD then said, that He would not again 
curse the ground for man's sake, because the imagin- 
ations of His intellect was evil from his youth, and 
that He would not again destroy the living creatures, 
Gen. 8:21. GOD again showed His love for man by 
His rescue of Isaac on the altar, and thus made His 
word good to Noah. 

GOD'S last demonstration was the offering of 
CHRIST, who was to make the final atonement. 
And after the atonement Peter tells us that JESUS 
carried the life message of GOD'S love to the "Spir- 
its in prison," dead people, prison, paradise, hell 
(sheol) and the grave, all mean the same thing. At 
the time of this preaching, Jesus body lay in Joseph's 
new tomb. If Peter did not make a mistake, these 
prisoners were all able to hear, and were in a place 
that Jesus could teach all of them, from Adam to 
Noah, and from Noah to John the immerser; and be- 
ing in a state that most needed CHRIST'S attention, 
it is safe to conclude that the hearing was attentive 
and the response greater than when Peter opened the 
Kingdom to living men. Surely they did not refuse 
to hear the CHRIST when like the thief on the cross 
with Him they could behold the intent of His bodily 
death and His descent to their abode. I believe they 



64 MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 

accepted Christ's faith and His death and burial in 
their behalf. If they did not His death for them was 
a failure, and if God did more for the living than for 
the dead it would be the first intimation in the law of 
pardon by which He showed Himself to be a respector 
of persons. 

But I wish now to call attention to an incident in 
the life of Jesus: Upon one occasion Jesus was teach- 
ing a great company in a house, where standing room 
was at a premium, even at the door. Here four men 
brought a palsied friend to get him healed, and so 
anxious were they that they laid him in a sheet 
and let him down through the roof where Jesus 
was, and Jesus healed the man on the faith of the 
four men. Matt. 9:2; Mark 2:3; Luke 5:18. 

We have one instance recorded in the first Corin- 
thian letter, Paul's strong argument on the resur- 
rection of the dead. I quote, * 'otherwise what shall 
they do, who are immersed for the dead, if the dead 
rise not at all ? Why then are they immersed for 
the dead?" / Cor. xv:2p. This seems to have 
been a practice in that congregation at least, and 
Paul recognized the right by referring to it as an 
argument in favor of the resurrection of the dead. 
These people believed that Jesus would hear their 
petition for their loved ones who had died without 
this important act, and that He would accept the 
act on their part, and pardon the delinquent on their 
faith. This certainly was commendable brotherly 
love on the part of those people, and what are we 
better than they that we cannot exhibit as much 
faith and love as they. The Catholic people have 



MYSTERY MADE KNOWN & QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 65 

diverted this act to prayer and delegated the praying 
to the priest. But those Christians did their own 
praying and accompanied their prayer by the personal 
act of immersion. 

I have now submitted a scriptural and reasonable 
answer to the question and announce that the remedy 
is in the great number of blessings that Heaven's court 
has thrown in your path in life ; and I suggest that it 
is now up to you to decide as to what will become of 
those unimmersed dead people. Should the dead not 
be benefited by this act on your part, it is then plain 
that they who follow blind leaders will find them- 
selves in the ditch with the leaders : for JESUS said 
that this should be the fate of the blind, and we can 
not help them if we would. 

I think I have answered the question fairly and 
intelligently, and I have tried to do so in the spirit of 
true Christian love. 



1 



■«SL? F CONGRESS 

II 



029 822 354 5 



